glasnost
Soviet government policy
Russian“openness”
Soviet policy of open discussion of political and social issues. It was instituted by Mikhail Gorbachev (Gorbachev, Mikhail) in the late 1980s and began the democratization of the Soviet Union (Union of Soviet Socialist Republics). Ultimately, fundamental changes to the political structure of the Soviet Union occurred: the power of the Communist Party (Communist Party of the Soviet Union) was reduced, and multicandidate elections took place. Glasnost also permitted criticism of government officials and allowed the media freer dissemination of news and information. (See also perestroika.)